Sunday marked the one year anniversary of Hurricane Irene making landfall on the east coast and not only was Irene the first hurricane of the 2011 hurricane season, but it also became the first major hurricane with winds peaking at 120mph.
Irene was first named just east of the Lesser Antilles on August 20, 2011 as a tropical storm. After crossing Puerto Rico, Irene strengthened to a category one hurricane and was able to intensify to a category 3 hurricane before hitting the Bahamas.
The track seemed set on South Carolina, but after making a turn to the north, Irene made landfall near Cape Lookout on the Outer Banks of North Carolina as a category one storm.
Irene caused destruction all along the east coast killing 56 people and becoming the fifth most destructive hurricane on record.
Our coast had minimal impacts from Irene including over four inches of rain in some places and peak wind gusts over 40 mph.
